Australia's broadband community is celebrating the Federal Government's recent decision to separate the accounting practices of Telstra's wholesale and retail arms, anticipating increased competition.

The measures will ensure transparent reporting on the deals between Telstra's wholesale and retail divisions, and restrict its ability to appeal regulatory decisions.

-It will definitely have a beneficial effect, in two ways," telecommunications analyst Paul Budde told ZDNet Australia. -Firstly, the competition gets a much better chance to do something in the area."

-Secondly, Telstra is far more focused so it will be more aggressive in facilitating wholesale because it will be seen as a customer, where now it is seen as a nuisance. With more resellers on the Telstra network, that will create lots of activity and new customers."

The Internet Industry Association (IIA) agrees. -This proposal simultaneously addresses the three core impediments to sustainable competition in telecommunications markets since 1997 deregulation," said IIA chief executive Peter Coroneos.

Coroneos sees the three core impediments as being Telstra's conflict of interest, the opaque transfer pricing arrangements which conceal the true cost of pricing of telecommunications services, and the prolonged and convoluted pricing negations Telstra's competitors have been subject to.

Primus Telecom has also come out in favour of the measures.

-The package offers the prospect of improved outcomes for competitors and therefore consumers - that is what competition is all about," said Primus general manager, regulatory, Ian Slattery. -The proposed separation should lead to equivalent treatment of carriers, offer Telstra vastly improved wholesale business development and less chance of anti-competitive outcomes."

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